An aircraft luggage bin typically opens and closes to the space above the passenger seating and holds luggage. Each of these luggage bins can generally hold three or more small carry-on pieces of luggage weighing around twenty (20) pounds apiece. Passengers will often want access to their carry-on luggage at some time during the flight, especially on long international flights, and these bins usually get opened and closed multiple times. With a dark cabin interior, seeing in the enclosed space of an opened luggage bin is difficult. Lighting for the luggage bins would be convenient, but running wires from the aircraft's power supply is costly, would incur unnecessary added weight, and would require maintenance. In addition, the running of wires to power luggage bin lighting is a waste of payload and the aircraft's power.
These bins usually open by letting the unlatched bin fall under the luggage weight by gravity. Currently, hydraulic dampers are employed within the bins to control the speed of the opening of the luggage bins. However, hydraulic dampers eventually wear out due to their high precision requirements and O-ring wear, after being cycled thousands of times during hundreds of flights. The hydraulic dampers dissipate the energy from the luggage bin opening under gravity as heat, which serves no useful purpose.
In light of the foregoing, there is a need for an improved damper design that additionally provides lighting.